Shine a light through the darkness
by Beldamslittlehelper
Summary: Arthur and his protective sister Morgana have been to many schools and they have all been the same. Arthur was born blind and school has always been the toughest part of his life, but he takes it in his stride and ignores all the nasty comments or so it seems. So when he and Morgana get sent to Camelot high, Arthur meets a boy called Merlin who is fascinated by Arthur.
1. Walking with a friend into the dark

The two people who had their arms linked pushed through the double doors that welcomed them into their new school. One of them was a pale white girl with long brunette hair down to her back. The other was a slightly taller blonde haired boy who's eyes were unfocused and weary of his new surroundings, not that he could see them . A few people gave them weird stares as they were wondering around the school, trying to find the head masters office.

In the opposite direction a dark haired boy who was walking past the two people had suddenly stopped in his tracks to find that there were two people who were wandering around the school had caught his eye. He noticed that their arms were linked, but he thought nothing of it despite his gaze being fixed on them. Before he could walk away the girl had caught his stare, she and the blonde boy walked up to him arms linked with the girl looking fierce.

"What are you staring at"! The brunette girl snarled at him viciously.

"Nothing, I just thought that you may be lost" The dark haired boy stammered.

The girl's eyes softened before revealing, "we are looking for the headmaster's office" she said in a dull tone".

"Then allow me to show you" the dark haired boy replied.

He was about to walk them to the headmaster's office until the girl spun him around, her facial expression looking serious.

"Who are you"? She questioned in a cold, unfriendly tone.

"I'm Merlin" the dark haired boy replied.

The girl stared at him for a second before introducing herself and the blonde boy, "I'm Morgana and this is Arthur" she said as she pointed to the blonde haired boy who she still had her arm linked to.

"Hello Arthur" Merlin said trying to be as friendly to him as possible.

"Hi" was all Arthur said back.

"Shall I take you to the headmaster's office now"? Merlin asked which got a nod from Morgana.

As they walked to the headmaster's office Merlin tried to make a conversation.

"So where are you from"? Merlin tried nervously.

"We previously lived in a small village in a poor area" was all Morgana revealed.

"Why did you move"? Was Merlin's second question.

"It's a long story, let's just say that school had a big part to play" Morgana replied, silently asking herself why she was telling a boy things that she didn't even know properly.

When they had come to the office Merlin wanted to know one more thing about them, "I don't mean to be rude but why do you too have your arms linked?"

Morgana's eyes turned dark and gave Merlin an evil stare before feeling Arthur's grip get tighter which forced her to calm down before answering Merlin's question. "Arthur's blind" Morgana said in a protective tone.

The sudden information made Merlin feel like a jerk, "I'm so sorry, I feel like a total idiot now, I'm sorry".

Morgana was about to speak until Arthur interrupted, "It's no problem, at least you were nice about it". Morgana nodded in agreement to Arthur's sentence.

A small smile was freely let loose on Merlin's lips before showing them to the door. He was about to walk away when he felt something poke at his leg. He turned around to see that Morgana was poking him with her foot.

"Stay outside the door for us" Morgana said, her eyes declaring the fear which she certainly wouldn't dream of speaking about. Merlin now understood that Morgana was protective of her brother; if Merlin was honest with himself he would be too.

"Sure" Merlin said before guiding Morgana to knock on the office door.

"Come in" the headmaster called.

Morgana and Arthur both came in arm in arm, Morgana felt Arthur hold on to her more firmly.

"Ah you must be the Pendragons" The head master said politely which startled Morgana and Arthur as their previous headmasters had not been so formal.

"Yeah" Morgana answered.

"I am Mr Agravaine and these are your timetables" he continued in a friendly tone.

"Thanks" Morgana and Arthur said together.

"Oh one more thing, I am aware of your condition Arthur" Mr Agravaine said softly which made Arthur flinch at the kindness.

As there was nothing more to say they both walked out of his office, Morgana let out a look of confusion as she left.

Merlin turned his attention to Morgana and Arthur, "so how did it go"? He asked curiously.

"He's kinda weird" Morgana stated while all Arthur said was that he wasn't like any other head teachers he had encountered before.

"Are those your timetables"? Merlin asked, pointing at the two pieces of paper that Morgana was holding.

"Yeah".

"May I have a look"? Merlin asked as he noticed that they were both in the same year as him. Morgana handed over their timetables and was relieved that Merlin would be in some of Arthur's classes.

"I'm in his science, maths and IT lessons" Morgana observed. "Are you in any lessons with him"? Morgana added more firmly.

"Funnily enough I am, he's in my English, PE and Religious studies class" Merlin replied which got a nod in response from Morgana.

"In fact English is our first lesson of the day, which we are all in" Merlin said with a hint of joy.

Even if it wasn't shown, Arthur let out a tiny smile just enough so that he knew he was smiling.

The school bell rang indicating that it was time for their first lesson. Merlin guided both of them to their classroom.

They ended up being five minutes late due to Arthur's nerves which were soon calmed down by Morgana squeezing his shoulder to let him know that it was going to be alright.

Without realizing their English teacher was stood by the classroom door, tapping his foot and glaring at his watch then the late students.

"Why are you late"! The teacher demanded which made Arthur frightened for a single second.

"Sorry sir I was showing the new people where their class was" Merlin replied while looking at Morgana and Arthur for backup, Merlin had not once ever been late before.

"What's your excuse"! The teacher said angrily, pointing a finger at Morgana and Arthur.

"Well this is our first day here, and my brother is blind so it's kind of difficult for him to get used to his surroundings if he can't see them" Morgana replied, her voice full of anger and irritation.

"Oh" the teacher said more quietly before adding "I forgot that little nugget of information" he admitted half-heartedly.

Arthur didn't look impressed and that was shown when he said "is that just another way of saying that you couldn't be bothered to read that piece of information about me in my file, that's highly unprofessional you know" Arthur said sarcastically which the teacher and Merlin were shocked by the way he spoke to him.

The teacher introduced himself as Mr Gaius and told Morgana and Arthur to take a seat; luckily they found a space where they could sit next to each other.

Merlin was sat next to his best friend Gwen whom he had known since reception. "Who are those two"? She asked pointing her gaze at them.

"They are the two new kids here, they moved from a small village" Merlin responded honestly.

Merlin suddenly noticed that the overly popular and equally nasty girl Morgause was also staring at them, picking out every detail and weakness about them within the five minutes they had arrived. But neither of them had expected what was about to come.

"Excuse me sir but I have appeared to have seen two new people who we have never seen before, perhaps they should introduce themselves" Morgause said in fake sweetness, snapping her stare at the two strangers who were sat as still as statues near the desks.

"What a wonderful idea" Mr Gaius said smiling at Morgause who beamed back at him. Morgause could act so sweet and innocent to those who don't suspect her as being one of the bitches, but to those who knew her true colours, she was a manipulative and just a horrible person in general.

"Well come on don't hold up the class" Mr Gaius bellowed.

"Yeah don't be shy, we would love to hear a bit about you guys" Morgause added in mock kindness.

Morgana gave Morgause and Mr Gaius a death stare before getting up awkwardly with Arthur by her side. Merlin had heard Morgause whisper spitefully to her friend Freya "they are going to be so easy to take apart".

All Merlin could do was glare at Morgause until his attention was turned on to Morgana and Arthur.

"So which one of you two should go first?" Mr Gaius asked in a dull tone.

"Lady's first is always fair" Morgause answered with one of her fake smiles spreading across her face.

"Fine, introduce yourself girl!" Mr Gaius snapped.

"I'm Morgana" Morgana said flatly, Mr Gaius looked at her bluntly as if he expected more. Morgana then added "I know how to deal with bitches, does that cover it"?

Mr Gaius tutted before turning on Arthur. "Right now you!" Mr Gaius said slightly more irritated than he was with Morgana.

A thought raced through Arthur's head, seriously what could I possibly tell him, oh I'm blind, my life is unbelievably boring and I don't have many friends.

"Um... I'm... I'm Arthur" Arthur stammered along with hearing a few sniggers which mostly came from Morgause.

"Would you care to share your condition with us Arthur"? Mr Gaius said spitefully.

Merlin saw Arthur's blue eyes turn cold before answering, "I'm blind, which is kind of a good thing seeing as if I did have vision I would most certainly be horrified at the ugliness of some of the people in this room".

Morgana, Merlin and even Gwen giggled at Arthur's comment; however the giggles were soon cut short by Morgauses loud reply.

"You can talk, you look like a tramp" Morgause spat before adding "I would tell you to look in the mirror but I almost forgot, you can't". Her and Freya were both laughing out loud while Merlin and Gwen were shaking their heads in disappointment.

Mr Gaius was about to tell the two new students to sit down when Arthur retaliated "Just one question, does make you feel better to do say and do stuff like this or is it to cover up the fact that you're as wet as piss"!

The whole class then made 'oooooooo' noises, Morgauses eyes were fixed angrily on Arthur before shouting "I'm not going to sit here and be insulted by a blind person!

But Arthur hadn't finished, "no you're right, you could be anywhere and be insulted" Arthur said in pure sarcasm before being yelled at to sit down by Mr Gaius.

As they were told to sit down Merlin's other best friend Gwaine whispered ,"That guy Arthur sure has some nerve".

Merlin smiled, "I know, he's brilliant", even Gwen couldn't help but like the new kids sense of humor despite their obvious troubles and insecurities.

Morgause didn't say another word throughout the rest of the lesson until break time when she whispered to Freya, "I'm gonna get the last laugh even if it's the last thing I do"!

When lunch time had come around, the anger the Morgana had been holdings in exploded in the corridor, luckily there were no teachers in sight.

"Who does that Morgause think she is!" she roared , slamming her wrist on the wall.

"She's always been like that" Gwen reassured her.

"If it makes you feel any better she calls me and Gwaine nerd boys all because we come top of the class" Merlin said encouragingly.

"Oh come on Merlin even a speck of dust has more intelligence than Morgause" Arthur said with a grin on his face, Merlin was liking Arthur more every minute.

"Have you always been this witty"? Merlin and Gwen asked at the same time.

"You have to have a sense of humor to get anywhere in life these days" Arthur replied calmly which got a smile from the others who were standing near him.

"I reckon he gets it from our father" Morgana contributed, giving a sign that she had now calmed down.

After eating their lunch Morgana announced that it was Merlin's turn to look after Arthur as she was not in his next class and Merlin was more than happy to help.

It was from that moment on, Merlin had made a promise to himself that he would help Arthur anyway he could.


	2. Flowers grow out of dark moments

The rest of the first week at their new school had passed. With the help and support of Merlin and Gwen it hadn't been so bad, especially if they compared this first week to all the others they had been through. There had been a few comments, mostly from Morgause about Arthur's blindness but it was nothing that was remotely going to cause offense to him.

"Doesn't anything that Morgause has said to you so far even slightly offend you"? Gwen asked curiously after the next couple of days they were at the school.

"It's nothing I've not heard before" was Arthur's reasonable reply.

"Doesn't it bother you even a little bit"? Merlin added.

"Merlin, people like Morgause who prowl around the school looking for the next prey to terrorise love nothing more than when the victim shows offense or any emotion, so I don't" Arthur said unaware that his eyes were spot on at Merlin.

Merlin's brain seemed to take a while to absorb what Arthur had just said, admiring his strong will and lack of weakness that not many people had the ability or strength to hide.

But nothing had prepared them for any of the events that were about to happen the following week.

It had started out as an ordinary Monday morning. Everyone in the school was chatting about what they did for the weekend, whereas Morgana and Arthur were searching for Merlin and Gwen as the Pendragons would be spending their first two lessons apart.

"Merlin"! Morgana called when she finally saw his face.

"Hey "he replied looking at both Morgana and Arthur, Gwen soon followed and gave Morgana a quick hug as they had spent a few lessons together and were already behaving like best friends.

Unknown to the others Arthur had picked up a sense of Morgause as he heard her voice gossiping about boys in the school just around the corner. Arthur then warned the rest of them that Morgause was coming by clearing his throat.

They all noticed and Gwen gently tapped his shoulder to ask what the matter was and his answer was "Morgause is coming". They all looked to their left and saw that Arthur was correct.

"How did you know it was her, she's all the way on the other side of the corridor"? Merlin asked, amazed at how good Arthur's hearing was.

"You see as I'm blind, my other senses naturally become more alert to me" Arthur replied.

Before Merlin could say another word Morgause was slowly approaching them along with her two friends, Arthur recognised that there were two other people with her. One was Freya who had made one or two comments about him here and there along with another voice who he wasn't familiar with.

As the three girls walked past Morgause jeered "Hey, where's your guide dog"! The person who Arthur didn't know added "Morgause are you blind, his guides dog goes by the name of Morgana". All three girls exploded into laughter before walking off sniggering amongst themselves.

Morgana was gritting her teeth and her eyes went dark to match her mood.

"Who was that with Morgause and Freya"? Arthur asked with slight irritation in his voice.

"That was the one and only vile Catrina" Gwen replied hoarsely.

Merlin turned to look at Gwen as if he knew something that neither he nor Gwen would share.

They were all saved by the bell as it rang to declare lesson time, they all dragged themselves to their lesson, Arthur and Merlin had their arms linked as they walked to the PE department.

Luckily for Arthur it was an all-boys PE group so he wouldn't have to put up with the three girls he now called 'the troublesome trio'.

However Morgana couldn't have been put in a more unlucky PE group. Not only were the troublesome trio in her group, the sport they were playing involved being in pairs and since Morgana knew no one in her group the teacher soon forced her to partner up with Freya.

Morgana had tried to reason with her teacher but her teacher who revealed herself to be addressed as Mrs Vivian, wasn't having any excuses.

Refusing to work with Freya Morgana sat herself down on the rusty bench and scowled at the three girls. Before Morgana could even register what had happened, Freya with encouragement from Morgause threw the ball that hit the very top of the bench which was clearly aimed at Morgana. Morgana grabbed the ball viciously and lobbed it at Morgause; unfortunately Morgause ducked from the ball and it smacked Mrs Vivian right in the face, making her nose bleed.

"Who dares to throw something at me"! She roared.

"It was Morgana miss, I tried to stop her but she wouldn't listen "Freya said in an innocent little girl voice.

"Is this true"! Mrs Vivian demanded.

Morgana was about to speak when Morgause interrupted her sharply, "She was aiming it straight at my face, she could of killed me with that" she said while pointing at the ball.

"Pendragon this is your first and final warning!" Mrs Vivian yelled so that the whole class knew about Morganas telling off.

Once Mrs Vivian's back was turned Morgause whispered just enough for Morgana to hear. "You know I wonder what would happen if that ball was to get thrown at her brother, accidentally of course". Before Morgause could even laugh Morgana charged to her, grabbed and ripped at the collar of her shirt like a wild animal.

"Miss, miss "! Catrina shouted and Mrs Vivian raced to the fight while the rest of the students were chanting fight! Fight! Fight!

"Stop that Pendragon!" Mrs Vivian yelled while pulling Morgana off Morgause.

"What's the meaning of this"? Mrs Vivian shouted.

"She started the whole thing"! Morgana shouted back.

"She's telling lies miss" Freya butted in, "Morgana just charged at Morgause like a bull just because she was upset about getting told off" Catrina added.

She's always picking on me"! Morgause cried as well as letting out a fake cry. Freya and Catrina both pretended to be comforting by hugging Morgause.

"Right I've had enough of this, Pendragon detention!" Mrs Vivian bellowed.

"But miss" Morgana whined.

"Get out"! Mrs Vivian ordered.

As Morgana walked away she saw the three girls all have sly smiles crawling on their lips, their pure white inline teeth that Morgana was desperate to knock out.

"That will teach her" Morgause sneered when Morgana was out of sight.

When lunch time had come around Morgana went with Gwen to meet up with Merlin and Arthur.

After Morgana had made it clear to Arthur that she was there she grabbed Merlin's arm and whispered, "Merlin could you possibly take Arthur home for me today"?

"Why"? Merlin whispered back.

"Because I have been put in detention" Morgana replied before telling Gwen and Arthur what had happened.

"You had a fight with Morgause"! Gwen exclaimed as soon as Morgana had told her and Arthur.

"Shh" Morgana whispered, not wanting the rest of the school to find out.

"What happened" Merlin and Arthur asked at the same time.

"Morgause practically threatened to throw a ball at my brother, that's what happened"! Morgana snapped which made Arthur flinch at the sudden raised voice.

"Sorry Arthur" Morgana whispered gently as well as rubbing his shoulder.

Having noticed that there was only ten minutes of lunch time left, they all went to the canteen and not expecting what was about to happen.

At first they were all alarmed when the saw the troublesome trio sat on the very back table but as they didn't seem to have noticed them they decided to keep themselves silent. They sat at the front table near the door so it was easier for Arthur, especially if the trio were to cause more trouble.

Arthur announced that he was going to get some water, Morgana offered to get it for him but Arthur wasn't one to like being fussed over. He went over to the water jug with his cane and managed to pick up a cup without knocking the pile over. However the actual water part was a tricky task, all of a sudden Arthur felt something brush against him which caused him to jump and spill the large amount of water all over the person behind him.

Morgana, Merlin and Gwen all rushed over to Arthur when they heard screaming from the person he had accidentally splashed. Arthur was even more mortified when he recognised that voice of the person which just happened to be Catrina's.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" Arthur stammered clearly getting distressed by the situation.

"You idiot, its everywhere"! Catrina bellowed.

"He said he was sorry" Merlin said defending Arthur.

"He will be" Morgause snarled as she and Freya ran up to Catrina with paper towels to dry herself off with.

With that the trio walked off, in the distance only Arthur heard Catrina's muffled "that blind brat is going to wish he had never been born". Gwen was a hundred percent correct about Catrina being vile.

With his cane Arthur quickly stormed off and began punching a row of lockers until Morgana stopped him.

"Arthur calm down"! She said, trying to get the stern looks off her and Arthur.

"Why should I, I can't even get water without tossing it and making a fool of myself"! Arthur shouted.

Morgana then grabbed Arthur and pulled him into a hug while Arthur was trying to calm down and stop shaking.

"It was an accident Arthur anyone could see that" Gwen reassured him.

"Anyway it was only Catrina so it wasn't like you splashed anyone important" Merlin added.

That made a tiny but definite smile appear on Arthur's face along with a chuckle from Gwen and Morgana.

Now it was certain that Arthur was calm again Morgana had told him that Merlin was going to take him home after school which Merlin and Arthur were fine with.

When it was home time, Morgana quickly ran up to Merlin to give him their address. Merlin linked arms with Arthur and followed the directions that Morgana had given him.

It took a while but eventually Merlin had found Arthur's house and walked him right up to the door step as Morgana had instructed.

"Should I leave you now" Merlin asked.

"No, my father will think I've walked on my own and he would be worried sick" Arthur replied, tightening his grip on Merlin.

"Ok" was all Merlin said.

Arthur went forward and knocked on the door with three exact knocks, Merlin could hear the door being slowly unlocked and a minute later a much older man looked at Arthur then squinted at Merlin.

"Where's Morgana"? He questioned.

"She's in detention" Arthur replied.

"And who's this"? The man asked looking at Merlin then behind him as if someone else was to creep up on them.

"This is Merlin, the boy I was telling you about over the weekend". If Merlin was honest with himself, he was secretly flattered that Arthur had told who he assumed was his father about their friendship.

Then I guess you had better come in too" the man said sternly.

Arthur went in first, taking his time to mind the step, Merlin then followed along with the older man saying "Shut the door quickly".

Merlin did as he was told with a slight confusion as to why he was so worried about a door not being shut so quickly.

"I've heard good things about you Merlin" The older man said as Merlin walked through the corridor.

"Um, thank you" Merlin tried without getting nervous.

"I'm Uther Pendragon , Arthur and Morgana's father" Uther introduced as well as holding out his hand which Merlin shook.

Uther pointed at a chair for Merlin to sit down on, Merlin looked around the house and noticed that they didn't have many belongings in the living room, but he strongly suspected that they either traveled light or haven't really began unpacking yet.

"I must thank you for helping my son get used to yet another new school" Uther said genuinely.

"You don't need to thank me, your son is an interesting person" Merlin stated.

Uther smiled before saying "My son has never had many real friends at school".

The sudden revelation made Merlin wonder what exactly happened in their previous schools.

Merlin was about to tell Uther that he would leave them to it when Morgana came through the door and saw Merlin sitting on her chair.

"Merlin, I didn't expect to see you here" Morgana said, slightly surprised that Merlin would stay with Arthur until she had got home.

"Your father invited me in" Merlin replied.

"Call me Uther and you deserve a bit of praise for being a good friend to my son".

"Yeah that's right Merlin" Morgana added with the first smile that Merlin had seen on her.

"Thank you, but I should go now" Merlin said kindly, not wanting to hold them up any longer.

Out of the blue there was a crash and a loud shout coming from the kitchen, they all raced there to find a smashed mug, dripping with tea all over the floor.

"I was trying to make tea for our guest as I usually can" Arthur said apologetically.

"Merlin was about to leave " Morgana pointed out while Merlin got a few paper towels to wipe up the mess. It was at that moment when he realised that it wasn't people's insults that frustrated Arthur, it was the fact that he found straight forward tasks like that difficult.

After helping clean up the spilt tea and the smashed mug, Merlin said goodbye to the Pendragons and said that he would meet them near the headmaster's office tomorrow as that was now their normal meeting spot.

As Merlin walked home he was desperate to know what had happened to make Arthur that determined to do things himself. He also wanted to know what had happened at their other schools to make Uther be that proud to see Arthur have a true friend.

All Merlin wanted to do was to be that true friend as whatever had happened in the past has effected all the Pendragons and Merlin certainly can't afford to make a mistake. If he does make that mistake the consequences could be fatal.

For the whole evening the only thing that was on his mind was the Pendragons.


	3. Everyone has a dark side

Over the next few days Merlin's bond with Arthur had become a lot stronger since the day he met his and Morgana's father. His curiosity about their past had also become more increasingly difficult to ignore. He did want to know more, but he somehow couldn't bring himself to ask. After all he did understand why they would want to keep their past private, so all Merlin did was push his curiosity to the deepest corner of his mind.

Although Gwen hadn't been told much about Morgana's and Arthur's past either, she too wondered what had happened in their previous schools. Being the kind girl Gwen is she decided not to bombard Morgana with questions as it would have only made things awkward between the bond that she had worked hard to achieve.

However both Merlin and Gwen had to put all their questions and curiosity behind them as the next comings days were going to be the most challenging that the four friends were going to face.

The following morning three days after meeting Arthur and Morgana's father Merlin walked over to the headmaster's office, which was now their usual meeting place with the Pendragons. He kept glancing at his watch until he saw Morgana guiding Arthur towards Merlin.

As they were chatting about nothing in particular a few people walked past while sniggering and pointing at Morgana.

"What are they laughing at"? Morgana asked suspiciously.

Before Merlin could answer Gwen rushed up to her while shouting her name.

"What's the matter Gwen"? All three of them asked simultaneously.

"Morgana, the troublesome trio have kind of made a nickname for you" Gwen said awkwardly.

"Well what is it" Morgana replied.

However Gwen didn't need to answer her as Morgause and Catrina were walking down the corridor, their vile smiles aimed at the four friends.

"Why hello, whoregana"! They both sneered before running off and giggling to themselves.

Gwen's face went pink while Morgana's went dark with pure anger.

"Oh god" Merlin muttered, ashamed that Morgana seemed to be the only victim of their bullying.

"Is that seriously the best they could come up with" Gwen said, trying to take Morgana's mind off it.

Morgana's fists were clenched as if she was about to lash out and punch something. Arthur could feel the tension rise up in her body and knew it was best to stay away when it happened.

Merlin could then feel Arthur pass himself to him which Merlin took notice off and linked arms with him.

At that exact moment Morgana noticed that Arthur had unlinked arms with her, which made a sharp pain of guilt take over her anger.

"I'm not going to stand here and let those trolls insult me" Morgana said forcefully.

"Neither will we but don't do anything that will end up with you in detention" Gwen warned.

"So what am I supposed to do, let them embarrass me in front of the entire school"? Morgana questioned with a hint of anger in her voice.

"No we fight back" Arthur suggested.

"Fighting's not allowed" Merlin stated.

"I don't mean actual fighting, I mean that whatever they throw at us we throw back" Arthur explained.

Morgana looked impressed with the idea.

"I'm not sure; I mean what if they talk about stuff which is personal"? Gwen questioned nervously.

"Then we will get dirt on them" Morgana replied now sounding determined.

Merlin then considered the idea then decided that maybe it was time that the troublesome trio had a taste of their own medicine.

"Alright" Merlin agreed along with Gwen who also thought that they have had more than their fair share of pleasure from other people's suffering.

"Ok" Gwen agreed. Morgana smile and quickly hugged her before high fiving the two boys.

The bell then rang; Merlin and Arthur went to their class followed by Morgana and Gwen who were in a different class to the boys.

It turned out that the two boys didn't have to wait long for a chance to take their plan into action.

Sitting at the desk opposite Merlin and Arthur were Morgause and Catrina chatting about something that the boys wouldn't be interested in.

Their conversation soon ended when Catrina caught them staring.

"What are you staring at"? Catrina said spitefully.

"Oh nothing, just at your troll faces" Merlin replied while Arthur chuckled.

At this point Morgause had joined in on the banter, "That's rich coming from you, you look like a weasel" Morgause said before she and Catrina burst out laughing.

"Well at least I'm a weasel who can look in the mirror in the morning" Merlin replied, slightly enjoying the banter.

"What for, you'll only crack it" Catrina retorted.

"It's better than shattering the whole mirror" Arthur added before getting evil stares from both the girls.

Once the lesson had ended, the two boys stood up ready to leave until Morgause whispered into Merlin's ear; "Your friend better watch his back, that's if he can" Morgause and Catrina then strutted off into the distance.

Meanwhile in Morgana and Gwen's class, Freya was sat alone and was staring at the two girls for most of the lesson.

When the girls had had enough of her staring Morgana shouted, "What are you staring at"?

Freya gave her a scowl in return before Gwen added, "What is your problem".

Freya's scowl deepened and her stare got colder.

"Aw are you upset coz none of your other troll mates are with you" Morgana said in a hateful tone.

Gwen then added in the same tone, "She needs her mates to stick up and respect her".

At the end of the lesson was when Freya grabbed Gwen's arm and lashed out. Morgana was just in hearing distance so she could hear everything Freya said.

"I think its best your careful with what you say, you don't want your secret to get in the wrong hands do you"? She said viciously.

Gwen shook her head.

"Insult me again and I'll tell everyone your dirty little secret" she snarled before adding in the same vile tone, "See how much respect you get from your thicko friends then".

Freya then swished her hair and flounced off to joining Morgause and Catrina in the corridor.

Tears were stinging at Gwen's eyes which Morgana noticed. She walked over to Gwen and patted her shoulder, Gwen rushed off crying while apologising.

Morgana ran after her, when Gwen had reached the girls toilet she stopped running and hadn't realised that Morgana had followed her.

"I'm so sorry" Gwen said in almost a whisper.

"Gwen, what happened with Freya"? Morgana asked gently.

Gwen sniffed and gulped before saying "I can't tell you".

"You can Gwen, please"! Morgana practically begged.

"You'll hate me" Gwen exclaimed.

"Try me" was Morgana's simple reply.

Gwen coughed and sniffed before answering, "Me an... and Freya were once friends a long time ago".

Morgana looked at Gwen, waiting for more.

"When... when we were friends I told her a secret" Gwen began before getting some toilet paper and blowing her nose.

"What happened"? Morgana asked quietly.

"Freya quickly became friends with Catrina and Morgause who didn't think I was a good enough friend for her".

"What about this secret" Morgana said in the same tone.

Gwen coughed before speaking, "I... I'm" Gwen stood there not finishing her sentence.

"You can tell me "Morgana said more softly.

Gwen let out a shaky sigh, "Morgana, I'm a lesbian" Gwen forced out.

Morgana put her arm around Gwen, pulling her into a hug before saying, "That's nothing to be ashamed of".

"Really "? Gwen asked nervously as if Morgana was about to disband their friendship.

"Gwen I don't care if your straight or not, I'm bisexual myself" Morgana admitted.

"Oh" Gwen said, almost relieved.

"I admit that I used to get bullied for it" Morgana said as well as adding, "between you and me I had a load of fights and it usually ended up in me getting excluded".

Gwen stood there as if she was waiting for more.

"Besides you as well as Merlin are the only friends I have had who haven't turned against me and I know you wouldn't so why should I do that to you"?

"I just didn't expect Freya to either, I mean we were friends" Gwen replied.

"Gwen real friends don't turn against each other, that's what I have learned while hanging out with you and Merlin".

Gwen gave Morgana a warming smile.

Morgana then added, "however if you do come out to everyone then Freya's threat will become empty" Morgana said reassuringly.

"I don't know if I can" Gwen said feebly.

"I don't want Freya to shout it out to everyone, but if you beat her to it then she won't have anything on you therefore there will be no point in her trying to get pleasure out of your pain" Morgana said.

Gwen smiled as she saw that Morgana's plan could work. She then gave Morgana one last hug before they both went to find Arthur and Merlin.

Back near the headmaster's office Merlin and Arthur stood waiting for the two girls to return.

"You don't think Morgana has got herself into another fight"? Merlin asked.

"Wouldn't surprise me if she did" Arthur replied flatly.

Merlin looked at Arthur as if he was hiding something, which only made Merlin's curiosity come back in full power.

Arthur's gaze was locked on the double doors as if he knew that those were the doors that Morgana and Gwen would come out from to see them. All Merlin could do was wait with Arthur.

Arthur then mumbled something that Merlin didn't catch.

"Arthur"? Merlin asked with genuine concern.

Arthur sighed before speaking, "Merlin, Morgana has got herself into so many fights in her school life that fights are now the only thing she expects when she goes to a new school" Arthur admitted.

Merlin just stood there in silence.

"If she gets excluded again then... I don't know how I will cope" Arthur added with a look of sorrow.

"I'm sure she won't" Merlin said trying to be helpful.

Arthur huffed out a laugh, "Merlin over years I have come to realise that the only reasons these fights happen are because of me".

"It's not your fault Arthur, you were born blind you had no control over it" Merlin said in a serious tone.

"I just think that if me and her went to separate schools then maybe the fights will stop" Arthur said before adding quietly, "nothing anyone says or does will change my opinion".

Merlin sighed and was about to reply when he saw Morgana and Gwen, Arthur's face seemed to lighten up as if he received some sort of signal that it was them.

Merlin decided not to tell them about what they had been discussing.

"Where have you been"? Merlin asked.

"Sorry were late, we were just having a girly chat" was Morgana's reply.

The four friends then walked into the canteen, only to be unexpectedly encountered by the troublesome trio.

"Well here are the featherbrained foursome" Catrina spat.

"Did you want something" Morgana replied nastily.

"Yeah, to get out of our way" Freya said spitefully.

When the trio tried to get past Gwen was the one to block their way.

"Move it peasant" Morgause snapped.

"Uh, no way" Gwen argued.

"Gwen I'm warning you" Freya said in fake kindness.

"Go on then, I dare you" Gwen threatened while the other three of Gwen's friends stood there smiling.

"Fine, I warned you" Freya said before adding, "Hey everyone, this girl who calls herself Gwen is a lesbian"! Freya shouted causing everybody in the canteen to stare at the trio and Gwen.

Gwen then decided to stand up for herself, "Yeah I am so what, it's what makes me happy and you can judge all you like but it doesn't bother me and do you know why"? Gwen shouted before continuing, "It's because I couldn't care less about people's opinions or gossiping as true friends would accept their friend's sexuality"!

Gwen's speech had made everyone silent until someone shouted, "well I'm gay and proud".

Then everyone began to smile and cheer at Gwen which made the trio die of embarrassment and hatred of the fact that some people were giving them evil stares which they had felt the pressure from.

Once the cheering had stopped Gwen went up to Freya and whispered, "Looks like your threat came out empty handed".

The trio then flounced off until Morgause said to Arthur, "I wonder how you're going to stand up for yourself".

All of a sudden Arthur stuck his cane out and all three of them tripped and landed near the plate clearing area as well as one of the rubbish bins.

The trio along with Arthur's friends looked shocked over what had just happened. Soon enough Merlin, Morgana and Gwen were all in fits of laughter along with half the canteen.

The trio were stumbling and struggling to get up; when they had finally managed it they stormed off to avoid any further embarrassment.

"How did you know when to do that"? Merlin asked, still in a laughing fit.

"I felt them hovering" Arthur replied while smirking.

When they had finished laughing, Morgana put her arm around Gwen and said, "You really went for it girl".

"I had to, I couldn't let them walk all over me like that anymore" Gwen replied.

It had made Merlin think that if Gwen could sort out her own problems like that then maybe in the vast future the Pendragons could also confront their fears and more importantly their past.

During the four friends time of laughter the troublesome trio had stormed off to the girl's toilets, shooing out any of the other girls so they could have a private talk.

"I am not letting a blind bonehead make a fool out of me"! Morgause roared as she slammed her bag on to one of the sinks.

Catrina walked slowly up to Morgause and said, "Then you must take control, show that brat who's boss".

"How will we do that"? Freya asked suspiciously.

Catrina gave Freya and Morgause a sly look before saying, "Well we need to get Arthur completely on his own without any of his interfering friends on the scene".

"But how, they are practically glued to each other" Morgause asked flatly.

Catrina eyed Morgause in a shifty way, "We need a few distractions to keep them busy".

"What kind of distractions"? Freya and Morgause said simultaneously.

Catrina let out an evil grin, "Cause an argument or fight, but that will be mine and Freya's job" Catrina said spitefully.

"What's mine"? Morgause asked, now slightly freaked out.

"Ah" Catrina said in a creepy tone before answering Morgauses question, "You will come face to face with Arthur alone then show him who's boss".

"What are you thinking Catrina"? Morgause asked, slightly worried.

Catrina smiled a gleeful smile before continuing, "You will have him at a place where you can let's say, finish him off" Catrina said letting out her vile colours.

"Finish him off" Morgause stammered.

"Unless your too scared" Catrina said in a cruel voice, her eyes sensing Morgauses fear.

"Alright, I'll do it" Morgause confirmed and with that the three girls left the toilets to get on with the rest of their day.


	4. In dark times the eyes begin to see

The next day school couldn't have been any more different for the four friends.

Although they could sense that the troublesome trio hadn't forgotten the incident in the canteen, none of the four friends could put a finger on why they were giving them the silent treatment.

The four friends were sat in their English class not listening to Mr Gaius talk at them; instead they kept gazing at Morgause and Freya who were sat two desks away from them. To their surprise they both had their heads down and for once they weren't trying to stir trouble which made the four friends get suspicious as well as worried.

"Why aren't they at least giving us evil grins"? Gwen whispered to the other three friends.

"Maybe they are still embarrassed about what happened in the canteen yesterday" Merlin suggested.

"Yeah but they wouldn't be silent about it" Morgana stated.

"Morgana's right" Arthur began before continuing, "If I trust my instincts I would say that they are planning something" Arthur said carefully.

They all took one last look at Morgause and Freya before they had also got on with their work.

As the day went on the trio's silence along with the distance they kept from the four friends had started to freak out Morgana and Arthur in particular.

For Arthur it had almost been strange not to hear bad jokes or rumors about his blindness. However he also felt a tingle of happiness in his spine, as it was the first proper time he wasn't forced to listen to the vile and sickening words of the ignorant people who didn't understand what it was like to be blind.

Morgana's take on it was that the trio may have found it in their hearts of stone to realise that their spiteful words didn't affect Arthur. Also Morgana couldn't help but notice that now there was no reason to fight or defend herself, it almost felt as if she could let go of all her anger and frustration that he been built up throughout the years and just let it deflate like a balloon.

On the other hand there were somethings that Morgana would never be able to let go of, the flash backs kept replaying in her memory as if they were a curse which would be with her till the end of time.

At lunch time the trio were nowhere to be seen, Merlin, Morgana and Gwen just assumed that they were too mortified to show up after yesterday's shenanigans. However Arthur couldn't help but think that they were plotting some sort of plan which involved a certain level of cruelty and violence. The most terrifying thought was that he suspected that their 'plan' would be aimed at him and him alone.

Arthur knew that bottling all his suspicions in wouldn't help him, but he was certain that no good would come if he did tell his friends about his suspicions just in case Morgana decided to confront them about it. After all he may be wrong although his gut instincts say otherwise.

All Arthur could do was to wait and see what happened even if it pained him to think about the near future.

Meanwhile the troublesome trio had retreated to the girls toilets to discuss their plan.

"So" Catrina began.

"What"? Morgause asked flatly.

"The silent treatment seems to working so far, don't you agree girls" Catrina asked, her voice slightly patronising.

"Just get to the point Catrina" Morgause said angrily while all Freya did was listen to the two girls, not wanting to get involved herself.

"Well now we have got them thinking that we have stopped the bullying, I think it's time we show those twits who rules this school" Catrina said in the same tone.

"Look Catrina can't we just go back to insulting them, I mean this plan does seem a bit extreme" Freya said in a small voice, Morgause gave her a small nod in agreement.

Catrina stalked up to both of the girls, "Are you questioning my plan" she spat.

Freya shook her head while Morgause did nothing.

Catrina stepped closer to Morgause, her eyes looking straight into Morgauses. She then whispered spitefully, "Are you a leader or a Lily liver"?

Morgause stared at Catrina for a single second before saying loudly, "I am a born leader, I'll show you"! She whisked her bag from the sink and was about to leave before Catrina grabbed her arm firm enough to make Morgause cry out.

"Our plan starts tomorrow" she then added in a vile whisper, "You had better show up or I may not be responsible for my actions".

Catrina then barged past Morgause then out of the toilets, her wicked plan coming into shape inside her head.

The next day Catrina was waiting for Morgause and Freya just outside the girl's toilets with one of her evil grins spreading across her face.

When she saw Freya walk across the corridor she walked quickly up to Freya and grabbed hold of her demanding where Morgause was.

Freya started to shake when responding to her, "I... I d... don't know, I'm sorry" she stammered as if Catrina was about to punch her in the face.

Catrina had ordered Freya to stand with her so she wouldn't look like a fool. Around five minutes later Morgause had appeared with a look of pure anxiety.

"What took you so long" Catrina snapped.

"Sorry" Morgause mumbled.

"Anyway" Catrina hissed before adding "Right here is how it's going to work, Freya you distract Morgana and Gwen, I'll distract Merlin and Morgause has the joy with Arthur".

Catrina let out another evil grin before shouting, "Well get on with it then"! As well as making shooing motions with her hands.

During the time the troublesome trio spent discussing their plan, the four friends were at their normal meeting place, all of them apart from Arthur were chatting about all kinds of different topics.

Arthur's suspicions had grown worse overnight, his instincts were practically screaming at him that something horrendous was going to happen. The most distressing part of his suspicions was that if he was correct the consequences would be severe.

"Are you alright Arthur"? Morgana asked gently which snapped him out of his traffic jam of thoughts.

"Yeah sorry just daydreaming "Arthur lied.

"What about, any girls"? Merlin said mockingly while nudging his arm.

"No" Arthur chuckled slightly before his worries had taken him over again.

Meanwhile the troublesome trio had taken their plan into action; Freya began the plan by telling the caretaker Mr Percival that someone was doing graffiti on the bike sheds. He rushed off to the 'incident' without noticing that Freya had taken his keys from him.

Freya then fumbled for the keys to the girls toilets so that she could do her part of the job.

But before she could do her job, she had to find Catrina so she could give her the keys to the caretakers store room.

When the bell rang, signalling for break time, Freya rushed over to Catrina who was putting on more makeup in the girls toilets.

Her evil grin spread across her face when she saw that Freya had got the keys. Catrina yanked off the key to the caretakers store room. Before racing off to do her part she whispered to Freya "remember lock them in, no matter what it takes".

Lunchtime couldn't have come any slower for the trio. They were the first ones to leave their lesson's, in a hurry to get their plan over and done with as quickly as possible.

Freya's job couldn't have been easier for her, Morgana and Gwen were already in the girl's toilet, laughing about stuff girls do.

"They won't be laughing for much longer" Freya mouthed before getting the keys and locking them in.

The sound of the door being locked didn't go unheard. Morgana walked slowly up to the door and tried to pull it open, when that didn't work Gwen suggested to try and push the door. Morgana and Gwen were soon disappointed as well as frustrated when the door still didn't budge.

"What's happening" Gwen asked, her voice shaking a little.

"Were locked in"! Morgana cried.

Morgana paced around the girls toilets for two minutes straight before it occurred to her if Merlin was with Arthur.

While Morgana and Gwen were locked in the toilets, Merlin was coming out of the men's toilets when he was stopped by a harsh grip on his arm. He spun himself around to see that the person who had grabbed his arm was Catrina.

"What do you want" Merlin snapped.

"If that's the way you're going to talk to me, I won't tell you about Arthur" Catrina replied in mock sweetness.

"Wait, what about Arthur"? Merlin asked cautiously.

"He's managed to lock himself in the caretakers store cupboard "Catrina lied.

Merlin looked visibly shaken, "Alright, take me to him" Merlin ordered as he followed Catrina.

When Catrina had lead him to the store cupboard, she had told him that the caretaker had left the keys in the door.

Without hesitation Merlin barged towards the door and opened it. Suddenly he felt himself being pushed in forcefully as well as hearing the door slam and get locked. It was at that moment when Merlin could kick himself as he out of all people should know Catrina's record for being the biggest scumbag and compulsive liar.

As Catrina walked off, flipping her hair she thought to herself, too easy, it was just like taking candy from a baby.

Since Morgana and Gwen had been locked in the girl's toilets, they were both worrying about Arthur and Merlin when a thought occurred to Morgana.

"Do you have Merlin's mobile"? Morgana asked, her mouth wobbling slightly.

"Why, yes" Gwen said as she handed Morgana her phone.

Morgana took the phone off Gwen and speed dialed Merlin's number, praying to herself that Merlin would answer.

In the store cupboard, Merlin was startled to hear his phone ring; he was more than relieved to find that the person calling was Gwen.

"Merlin"! Morgana exclaimed as soon as he picked up the call.

"Are you with Gwen"? Merlin asked now worried sick about Arthur.

"Yes" Morgana replied.

"Merlin"? Gwen asked which Merlin could hear in the background. Gwen then carried on speaking, "Are you with Arthur"?

"I would be" Merlin began, "If I wasn't locked in the storeroom" Merlin finished off his sentence in shame.

"What, no you can't be"! Morgana shouted into the phone.

"Why" Merlin asked now frightened of Morgana's answer.

"Because we are locked in the girl's toilets"! Both of the girls exclaimed.

"That means... Arthur's on his own"! Merlin yelled before adding, "Catrina locked me in here, it's been the trio's plan to get us out of the way so they can have Arthur by himself"! Merlin continued to shout.

"Shit" Morgana cursed with a lot of force under her breath.

"We need to find a way to escape and fast" Merlin said a bit more quietly.

With that they ended the call that very moment and focused on finding a way out.

However during the time they had spent on the phone Catrina and Freya had met near the Math's corridor.

"How did it go"? Freya asked.

"Went as smooth as silk, he's so gullible its painful" Catrina then laughed, sounding just like a witch.

Freya stayed silent.

"Now we text Morgause to finish Arthur off" Catrina said in her own vile tone of voice.

Freya then began to breath heavily, a mental list of what could potentially happen was so long that it almost disturbed her thoughts and nerves.

Catrina then took out her phone to text Morgause which made Freya panic even more.

Walking down the English corridor Morgause saw Arthur standing there looking like a lost puppy.

A twinge had suddenly made its way up to her chest; it pained her to see Arthur look so confused about the real world. She was supposed to hate this boy but in truth he was in many ways a lot stronger than her which was one of the many reasons why she picked on him.

It had suddenly occurred to her that Arthur didn't even deserve a quarter of the bullshit that Morgause admitted she had started; now she couldn't do anything to change the past to make it right. If she went through with this loathsome plan she would only have herself to blame, after all it was her own fault for being so repulsive against the Pendragons.

Taking a deep breath she walked closer to Arthur but not too close as she didn't want him to know that it was her. Sometimes Morgause wished that she was someone else as most people did.

In the meantime Merlin had been desperately searching through the caretaker's things to find something which could help get him out of the store room as quick as possible. To his surprise he found a box full of twisted paperclips, at that moment he was glad that he knew how to pick a lock so easily.

Fiddling with the paper clip in the lock Merlin had been unsuccessful for the first three minutes. He was about to move on to a different method of escaping when he heard the door unlock. He was about to rush out when a hand stopped him.

"What are you doing in there"! The caretaker shouted loud enough for the students who were standing near the headmaster's office to hear.

"I was locked in; please let me go it's an emergency"! Merlin retorted. He barged past the caretaker while snatching his keys. He ignored the caretaker's shout of "Oi I've already had them taken from me once today"!

Merlin ran like the wind towards the girls toilets, pushing past the Que of girls who were desperate for the loo.

The two girls heard keys get jangled and twisted through the lock and were relieved to find it was Merlin.

The two girls rushed out while Merlin yelled, "We need to find Arthur"!

They all raced across different corridors, more than desperate to find where Arthur was.

As Freya watched Catrina frantically type on her phone, Freya was getting nervous ticks in her hands.

"There" Catrina announced before adding, "come on off to see the show go on".

Both girls walked quickly to the English department, Catrina beaming from ear to ear at the thought of Arthur getting his just desserts.

Although Morgause knew that Freya and Catrina were on their way, she still couldn't bring herself to do the evil that Catrina had wanted.

She put her hands a millimeter near Arthur's shoulder but by now her hands were trembling, her guilty conscience yelling at her not to do this.

Morgause took a deep breath, her hands were as still as statues as if they had a life on their own and refused to move.

What Morgause didn't notice was that Catrina and Freya were now watching and waiting for Morgause to finish off the job. When Catrina had started to get impatient she decided to keep it in as if she had a surprise up her sleeve.

In the distance Morgana Merlin and Gwen were rushing towards the English block where they saw a hint of Arthur and ran towards him.

Unknown to them Catrina had seen them, she crept up to Morgause and without a second for Morgause to turn around Catrina shoved Morgause therefore making her knock into Arthur with a scream causing Arthur to tumble down the stairs violently until his head was smacked onto the tiled floor.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE"! Morgana shrieked as she bolted down the stairs three at a time.

"I- I" Morgause stammered, tears brimming in her eyes while giving Catrina a betrayed slash vile look.

"YOU HAVE GONE TOO FAR"! Merlin and Gwen yelled at the top of their lungs.

Mr Agravaine came dashing towards where Arthur was lying and checked for a pulse rate before shouting, "who did this"!

"MORGAUSE"! Morgana shrieked clearly getting near hysterical.

Everyone turned their burning glares at Morgause who had tears running down her cheeks and shaking violently.

"He's still alive" Agravaine stated before adding, "He needs to go to hospital, this instant".

"I'll go with him" Morgana said as she tried to calm herself down without much success.

Mr Agravaine then called for an ambulance, while they were waiting Morgana patted Merlin on the shoulder, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Merlin" she stammered, "I need you to tell... my father" she finished, her voice getting higher.

"I will" Merlin soothed.

"Tell him I've gone with Arthur" Morgana shouted as the ambulance arrived.

Five minutes after the ambulance had left, Merlin rushed off secretly to the Pendragons house.

Merlin was slightly shaking as well as nervous to what Uther's reaction was going to be. Merlin knocked exactly three times before he finally managed to get an answer from him.

The door was only opened a tiny fraction, "What are you doing here, school doesn't finish for another two hours yet"? Uther said rather panicked.

"Uther I was told by Morgana to tell you that Arthur has been involved in an accident and Morgana has gone to the hospital with him" Merlin said in a whisper but loud enough for Uther to hear.

"You ... you've hurt him"! Uther accused.

"I haven't Uther I swear I didn't, it was this girl called Morgause and-"Merlin was cut off by Uther's shouting.

"You have hurt my son; you have failed him and betrayed me"! Uther yelled before adding in a growl, "don't darken my door again" then slamming the door in Merlin's face.

Uther's words had repeated themselves over and over again in his head for the rest of the school day and evening. Uther was right about what he had said; he should have spotted their plan sooner. If he did things would have turned out differently, now all Merlin could do was sit alone and hope that things will get better.


	5. Being alone in the dark isn't easy

Merlin was woken up by the irritating sound of his mobile phone ringing loudly, disturbing the once sleepy atmosphere.

"Hello"? Merlin said groggily.

"Merlin"! A muffled voice said on the other end.

"Who is this"? Merlin asked, slightly worried about who was calling at this time of night.

"Uther" the muffled voice replied with fear.

"Uther, I thought you didn't want to hear from me again" Merlin said which he regretted instantly.

Merlin's sentence hadn't only affected himself; Uther's breathing had become faster at the memory of his own words that were now being used against him.

"I... I was just angry and afraid" Uther stammered.

"It's alright, I can understand that" Merlin interrupted kindly before speaking again, "Are you alright "? Merlin asked, still feeling guilty about his earlier sentence.

Uther hadn't been social for so long that he suspected that he no longer knew when it would be socially acceptable to lie.

"No".

"Are you ill, do you need emergency services"? Merlin asked.

"No, no, I'm just ... frightened" Uther replied truthfully as there was no point in lying.

"Tell me" were the only two words that Merlin said which alone showed real compassion.

"Nights are the worst, I can't keep the horrors away at night and I can barely keep them away in the daytime" Uther explained.

"What's making you frightened, can I help"?

"No" Uther said full of shame before adding, "There was only one person who could have helped me through it, and she went".

"Tell me about her, what was she like"? Merlin asked, trying his best to keep Uther calm.

Merlin's question went unanswered as he could hear whimpering, "Sorry" Merlin said frantically now knowing never to ask about this woman again.

A thought then entered Merlin's head, "Do you want me to come over"? Merlin offered politely.

Uther looked at the phone as if it held the answer to Merlin's question.

Yes, no?

In truth Uther didn't really know the answer to the question but decided on an answer after a good few minutes.

"I think so, however I can't promise that I can let you in, when it's this bad" Uther explained.

"I understand I'm on my way" Merlin confirmed.

Merlin was about to hand up when Uther stopped him by saying, "Keep talking to me," Uther practically pleaded.

"What should I talk about"? Merlin asked, trying to keep the conversation running.

"I... I- d don't know" Uther replied.

So Merlin talked about his previous summer holiday in Rome, talking about the scenery and places to go for entertainment and shopping.

"I'm just outside and I'll knock three times, you don't have to answer if you feel that you can't" Merlin announced quietly, not wanting to disturb the neighbors.

Even with the warning, the knocks had startled him. Uther wanted to answer but the thought that it was some other man attempting to cause suffering instead of being Merlin had made him panic.

"I'm sorry, I can't do it" Uther said, ashamed that he had let fear get the better of a situation where someone actually wanted to help him.

"Its fine, no need to apologise" Merlin soothed before adding, "I'll just be out here".

Merlin settled down on the door step of the Pendragons house, leaning against the door.

After a minute of pure silence Uther broke the silence by asking if Merlin was alright out there, feeling ashamed that he had just made a boy no older than Arthur come all the way here for nothing in return.

"I'm fine, really" Merlin said calmly even if he was a tiny bit cold and maybe even scared.

Despite what Merlin had said Uther was now worrying about Merlin's safety. The thought of Merlin being a vulnerable target in the dark made Uther feel terrible, he couldn't face the fact that if something did happen to Merlin then he alone would have to carry the burden along with many others he already had to carry.

"I'm going to let you in now" Uther said suddenly and quickly. He then added, "When I open the door I need you to come in quickly, I can't have the door open too long" Uther explained, his voice low and gravelly.

Merlin scrambled to his feet when Uther had unexpectedly said he was going to look through the peephole to check if it was really him.

Having passed Uther's inspection, Merlin heard the front door unlock. When it was fully opened Merlin ducked inside and helped Uther shut the door.

Once the door was locked, Uther let out a deep shaky breath. He was deliberately not looking at Merlin, ashamed of showing his embarrassment and weakness in front of him.

Merlin had ended the call and slid his phone into his pocket. "Hello Uther".

To Uther Merlin's voice sounded so understanding and gentle, Uther had to look at him and realise that this was the first time in years he had ever heard such small words be said in such gentleness.

"Hello" Uther said before promptly bursting into tears.

Uther flinched slightly when Merlin tried to hug him, but he soon closed his eyes and let himself be comforted.

Merlin didn't know this but he was the first person in more than five years to hold him as he cried tears of remorse. The though only made Uther cry harder which Merlin responded to by holding him tighter.

As Uther sniffed, sobbed and shook he had realised that for once in his life he actually felt safe.

Once Uther had finished spilling tears that had been held back for so many years he finally got the courage to speak.

"I... I'm glad you came" was all Uther could say.

"Me too" Merlin replied as he passed Uther a tissue which got a small nod in return.

Uther then made a hand gesture which meant he was to follow him, Merlin soon remembered that he was walking into their living room and was told by Uther to take a seat.

Merlin looked around the room, noticing that it hadn't changed much since the last time he was there. Uther noticed him looking around and said "we don't have many belongings ".

"Oh" was all Merlin could say before his eyes were unexpectedly fixed on a photo of a young blonde woman.

Uther caught him staring at the photo and let out a heavy sigh.

"Sorry" Merlin said, afraid that he might have just crossed the line. Instead Uther just walked up to the photo, handed it to Merlin and explained its value to the family.

"Her name was Ygraine, she was my wife" Uther revealed, which made Merlin want to know more but he knew better than to pester Uther with questions, so instead he just waited for more.

"She was Arthur's mother, she was so good with him despite his troubles" Uther continued.

Merlin let out a little smile before allowing Uther to continue if he was up to it.

Uther's next sentence about her was , "She was the kindest woman you could meet, she was as fragile as a flower but when worst came to worst she was always someone you could rely on".

Merlin looked at the photo in detail, Ygraine looked pretty in her photo and the similarities between her and Arthur were more than a little noticeable. Her hair was a lighter blonde than Arthur's however their face shapes looked roughly the same. It puzzled Merlin how Arthur looked so much like his mother yet so much like his father as well.

"She and Arthur look so alike" Merlin said softly to match the mood in the house.

Uther let out a small smile before saying his last words about her, "The sad part is that it's always the best people in our lives who we lose then miss the most once they have been lost".

Merlin didn't want to comment in fear of upsetting Uther or destroying the moment of honesty.

Merlin then yawned and mouthed an apology when Uther saw him.

"You're tired" Uther stated.

"A bit" Merlin admitted before another yawn had escaped from him.

Merlin was about to ask If Uther would be alright on his own however Uther had spoken first.

"Why don't you stay here the night, unless your parents don't know you're here" Uther said kindly.

"My parents are out for the weekend" Merlin replied.

"Stay here, I don't want you wondering out there alone" Uther said as if Merlin was his own son.

"Thanks" Merlin said, flattered at Uther's offer".

Uther then showed Merlin to Arthur's room, "You can sleep in Arthur's room".

"Are you sure, I'll sleep downstairs it's no trouble" Merlin suggested but Uther shook his head.

"His room feels empty without Arthur around, I'm sure he won't mind after all you do show extreme loyalty to him".

"Thank you" Merlin replied.

Uther raised a hand to stop Merlin from speaking, "No I should be the one thanking you".

Before Uther left Merlin to sleep Merlin had one question.

"Where's Morgana"?

"She's with a girl called Gwen, she's staying at her house, it's closer to the hospital" Uther stated.

"Gwen is as much a good friend to Morgana as I am to Arthur" Merlin said in deep honesty.

"I know" Uther said then left the room saying goodnight which Merlin responded by saying the same to Uther.

Merlin sat on Arthur's bed and looked around the room which made him miss Arthur more ; he spotted a broche that Merlin assumed belonged to Ygraine as it was placed in a box labelled 'Mums stuff'.

This had just Made Merlin's questions about Uther's wife and Arthur's mother increase in his brain. As much as he wanted to know what Uther meant by she went, at the same time Merlin feared that it might upset the whole household therefore affecting the friendship that Merlin had just earned back.

Merlin closed his eyes and thought about Arthur and the safety of his future until he finally drifted off into a deep sleep.


	6. No matter how dark the moment

**I have been advised by the author to give a warning about this chapter as it contains what some people may say as a graphic description of a house fire. So if you get triggered by house fires then you are warned to skip this chapter!**

The following morning Merlin had got up bright and early to visit Arthur at the hospital.

Arriving at the hospital it was jam packed with nurses wheeling hospital beds around the corridors as well as visitors and patients sitting in the waiting room looking sorry for themselves or rushing towards different wards.

The atmosphere was overwhelmed by the sounds of babies crying, phones ringing and people talking in the background along with doctors and nurses carrying hospital equipment.

After asking one of the nurses where Arthur's ward was he walked down the corridor, carefully dodging other nurses racing down the corridors with different kinds of equipment in hand. Also there were the visitors who were heading towards the same direction, desperate to be with their loved ones in the wards.

Opening the door to the ward where Arthur was being kept he soon saw that Morgana was already in the room, her hand covering Arthur's with her thumb rubbing against the back of Arthur's hand.

"Merlin" Morgana said, seeming to be only half surprised at Merlin's sudden appearance.

Merlin walked carefully towards Arthur who was lying down with his eyes closed, covered in wires which looked as if they were snakes coiled around its prey. Also there was an oxygen mask placed into his mouth along with being connected to a machine that made a noise whenever Arthur breathes .

"How is he"? Merlin asked once he had sat down on the plastic chair that was uncomfortable enough to make visitors come for a short amount of time.

"There's been no change since he was brought here" Morgana replied, her voice wavering as she spoke.

They both sat in silence for the next five minutes before Morgana looked at Merlin straight in the eye, "Why did you come here"? She then asked innocently.

Merlin blinked and sighed before answering her.

"I wanted to come and see how Arthur was doing so I could tell your father the news" Merlin replied in a quiet and honest voice.

All Morgana did was look at Merlin then Arthur as if she was constantly checking to see if Arthur was about to wake up. Merlin gut instincts instantly told him that he was more than certain that this was what Morgana was doing last night instead of staying at Gwen's house.

They sat through another patch of silence until Morgana broke it the silence which seemed to be deafening apart from the noise that the machine was making.

"Merlin my father told me that you spent the previous night with him at my house, is that true"? She asked gently.

"Yes" Merlin answered, "He asked me to come round, he was petrified" Merlin added.

Morgana sniffed, "he's been like that since we moved away from our last village".

That little sentence had brought all his questions and guesses to why the Pendragons had moved here all back into Merlin's brain but this time those thoughts all seemed to be glued into his mind. Causing Merlin to be driven mad by them even if his facial expression didn't show it.

However Merlin's mouth seemed to make his decision for him as he uncontrollably blurted out, "Why do you move away from your last home to here"? At that moment Merlin wanted to kick himself several times so he could feel the pain that Morgana would now feel as a result of Merlin's question.

To Merlin's surprise Morgana's facial expression showed no anger or embarrassment, instead she just looked at Merlin in a calm way as if she was expecting that question to be asked at some point in the conversation.

"You're really interested to know aren't you"? Morgana said softly.

"Yes" was all Merlin could say who was now unable find anymore words that would be helpful.

Morgana let out a heavy sigh before giving Merlin full eye contact while explaining the huge and important story.

"Well at our last school we were hated just as much as we are here but at that time we didn't have any friends like you and Gwen to back us up, so we had to face everyone just us against them" Morgana started.

"What happened"? Merlin asked while gently getting hold of Morgana's hand which she accepted and held Merlin's hand in return.

"One evening after school we were all at home and we heard a bang at our door, at first our father thought it was just some drunk who had stumbled on to our front door".

Morgana cleared her throat awkwardly before continuing.

"It soon turned out that it wasn't the case when our mother shouted hysterically that she could see our front door burning right in front of her".

Merlin squeezed Morgana's hand and simply said that she could stop if she needed too, despite this Morgana kept on talking as if for once in her life she had no control over her mouth.

"Before we could save any of our precious belongings we all had to run towards the back door and in our rush to unlock the door they key to it snapped so we had to make our way upstairs as the fire was making its way through the house".

Morgana paused to take a deep breath.

"We had to make an exit through my father's bedroom window, me Arthur and my father all got down safely however our mother"... Morgana trailed off, now looking at Arthur as if she expected him to tell the rest.

Merlin just looked at Morgana, sorrow and deep sadness spreading across his facial expression.

"She panicked when it was her turn to climb out from the window, although we were all shouting for her to come down she was just frozen in her position".

There was a little pause.

"Our father was about go up and save her until she did decide to save herself". Morgana said her voice trembling before adding in almost a whisper, "By then it was too late, the fire had already reached the bedroom and before we could say or do anything our home collapsed along with the happy memories of being a whole family". Morgana finished, her voice at the highest it could go with tears rolling down her cheeks.

Merlin felt his own eyes stinging painfully just by listening to Morgana's tragic story.

Once Morgana had calmed down a bit she whispered something while looking at Arthur which Merlin was just about in hearing distance to understand what Morgana was saying.

"He was lucky in a way, he couldn't see the horrors which me and my father had to watch and face".

Merlin squeezed Morgana's hand again which got her on to her next sentence.

"Since then our father has changed to a frightened, vulnerable and bewildered man who is now convinced that everyone is out to kill us"

Morgana paused for the third time but this time it was for a shorter amount of time.

"Now that this has happened has not only affected my father but its affected me in such a way that nothing has ever done before".

Merlin was about to tell Morgana to stop when she let out her final sentence, "Merlin before this happened Arthur was the only thing me and my father treasured and now Arthur's life has been put in danger, it's like the fire event all over again but this time if we lose Arthur then my family will fall on its knees until there is nothing left of us". Morgana whispered as if she was in great pain.

At this point Merlin went over to where Morgana was sat and gave her a long hug while she cried into his shoulder. Merlin let her tears roll from her eyes on to his shirt, not caring about the amount of warm tears which were getting soaked into it.

"Thank you "Morgana said in between sobs before breaking the hug. "You're a loyal friend" she added which made a faint smile appear on Merlin's face.

They were soon interrupted by a nurse who didn't look particularly happy about doing an early morning shift which was shown when she told them that they needed to leave so she could check on Arthur properly in a less than polite way.

When Merlin and Morgana both stood up to leave, Merlin pulled a face behind her back which received a chuckle from Morgana and a huff from the nurse.

Before leaving to go back to their homes Merlin said something quietly so no one else could hear.

"If you ever feel that everything is too much to handle then come to me, I'll always be there to help "Merlin said which made Morgana smile for the first time since Arthur's accident.

"You didn't have to say anything Merlin" she replied before adding "you have already proved that by being more than considerate to Arthur as well as being willing to look after my father".

With that Morgana turned around and made her way out of the hospital , while Merlin decided to carry on with his duty to Arthur by waiting just outside Arthur's ward ready to race in the moment the nurse lets him.


	7. The future is hidden by a dark veil

Over the next few days Merlin's visits to Arthur at the hospital increased as each day passed by. He made sure that Arthur was regularly updated about various things that had changed since Arthur's accident despite knowing that he couldn't hear a word Merlin was saying.

At every chance he had of visiting the unconscious Arthur, Merlin had always been at Arthur's side regardless if anyone else was there watching him grab his hand and rub it in soothing circles or listening to him talk to the silent Arthur. He knew he had no time to waste as one day fate could pull them apart for eternity.

It was a miserable Monday afternoon when he was finally able to leave school to see Arthur. Unfortunately still nothing had changed throughout the whole week he had been at the hospital. However it had given Merlin plenty of time to say things that he may one day never be able to say again.

Sitting down on his usual seat that one of the nurse's now called the Merlin chair, he carefully took Arthur's hand and explained the surprising news at the latest gossip around the school.

"Well the good news is that the troublesome trio no longer seem to be a trio and there was no catch this time, they actually looked as if they were horrified at each other for who they truly are ", was only the beginning to Merlin's speech.

"However the school itself is another story" Merlin said before adding.

"School has become... a place full of misery and sorrow, no one's talking to each other as much or smiling as freely as they once did".

Merlin grabbed Arthur's hand gently as if he was worried about hurting him.

"The incident hasn't only affected the entire school... it's also affected those who are considered close to you a severely deeper way" Merlin said despite the lump forming inside his throat.

"The whole village have taken this tragedy to heart, your family especially." Merlin sniffed before continuing to talk, "Morgana is in pieces, she's not eating or sleeping properly and as for your father... well distraught is putting it mildly. He's now convinced that he's cursed, he and Morgana blame themselves for what happened, they are unable to hurl their harassing thoughts to the deepest corners of their mind because of their phobia of losing you".

Merlin let out a small chocking noise.

"And me... I have been questioning myself if I was partly responsible for your incident. "

Merlin's eyes were darting towards the floor then back up to Arthur before clearing his throat to let out his next sentence.

"I know I might never get the chance to say this again but... going back to when I first met you I did have my suspicions that you would be well... strange, but from being your friend I quickly learned that you were not what you seemed. You were able to shake off the insults like they were just bread crumbs off your lap, whenever things got feisty you always kept your cool despite the tension in the atmosphere which most people would never have the courage to even consider".

Merlin took a deep shaky breath before his final sentence came tumbling out of his mouth.

"Arthur I just want you to know that... you're a special person who deserves not to have the worry of fearing that you're alone".

Merlin then wiped the many tears that were rolling off his face with his sleeve before being interrupted by one of the nurses.

Merlin felt himself being tapped on the shoulder by the young nurse who had a soft gentle voice as if she understood what he was going through.

"A close friend"? She asked softly, her voice soothing Merlin's sadness.

"Yeah" Merlin snuffled.

The nurse then gently told him that she needed to check on Arthur. Merlin was then guided out of the room.

Merlin turned to his right and looked at the unconscious Arthur one more time before being led away along with his thoughts of Arthur recovering.

Now Merlin feared for the future a million times more than he has ever done before.


	8. During dark times the truth's discovered

It had turned out that Merlin's description about the gloomy atmosphere haunting the school had been a hundred percent accurate.

These days the subject of Arthur's incident was not to be spoken of which was now the only rule that all students obeyed. The atmosphere in lessons was now a lot quieter as everyone put their heads down and got on with their own work without a single word coming out of anyone's mouth.

The troublesome trio were the most silent of all, in fact it would be a lie to call them a trio.

Freya kept her distance from everyone. She didn't speak or even laugh, the only time that she would look up from her work was to look at Gwen as if she was apologising for the way she had acted.

Gwen ignored her.

After the first 3 days without the presence of Arthur in the school , Freya gave up trying to seek forgiveness from Gwen and went back into her tiny shell that she had trapped herself in along with many other students.

Catrina on the other hand wasn't so shy. She would give Gwen, Merlin and Morgana in particular death stares as if she was going to kill them one by one. Catrina showed no remorse of Arthur's incident, in fact if she had the courage she would have made nonstop jokes about it. However during to the miserable atmosphere that was lurking around the school, Catrina may have possibly realised that her jokes would not have been taken lightly.

But it didn't seem to stop her from giving the girls from the former trio a glare that could have meant a number of different things, but the one thing that all the other students knew for sure that it could only lead to more trouble.

However it was Morgause who was the center of attention and not in the positive way it used to be. For the following two days after Arthur's incident she hid herself away, avoiding any sort of dramas that were heading towards her, unfortunately the rest of the school had other ideas. Morgauses phone was overloaded by a whirlwind of vicious texts telling her how cruel and vile she was, her past friends and even people she didn't know filled her Facebook timeline with nasty posts and strict lectures about how disgusting she was along with Facebook groups wanting justice for Arthur.

Now she was back at school, the endless insults and nasty shout outs towards Morgause didn't stop or decrease even in the slightest. But the only one who was effectively giving her the silent treatment was Catrina, which only meant that bad actions would take place, but what Morgause feared the most was that Catrina's silence was louder than her words.

Meanwhile Merlin and Gwen did everything they could to help Morgana and her family get through the trauma. Merlin jobs were to make sure that the Pendragon family had enough food to last them a whole week as well as keeping their house tidy. Gwen's job was to keep Morgana and her father company for as long as she could during the night until her mum called for her to come home.

Despite their small doubts of Arthur not making it they both put on a strong face and a clear head as their feelings didn't matter right now. They agreed with themselves that they would focus on the Pendragons and their needs and problems even if that meant leaving their own behind in the deepest corner of their minds.

Although each day had exhausted everyone in the Pendragon household, they all took every day in their stride and besides a couple of dramas they got through each day even if the majority of those days were miserably depressing.

But too get through this Merlin knew that he and Gwen would have to stay strong for what was left of the Pendragon family no matter what destiny decided to do with Arthur's future.

The next day at school Morgauses lunch time that these days were usually full of people giving her disgusted looks and shouting out spiteful words about her. But today it would be a lunch time that would replace all those long vile words that had been going through her head.

Walking along the corridor dreading the harsh looks and comments that were awaiting her, those fears were cut short when she was suddenly dragged into the girls toilet and slammed against one of the toilet doors which caused Morgause to tumble over and smack her head on the bottom of the toilet.

When she heard the distant sound of two footsteps coming towards her she looked up to see that the person staring down at her was Catrina.

Stumbling to get back up Morgause said breathlessly, "W- what was that for "?

"Oh that was just to get you attention " Catrina replied in a harsh tone.

"Wheres Freya"? Morgause asked while looking around the toilets to see if she was hiding from all the violence.

"Oh I told her to jog on , she is no longer of any interest to me , you on the other hand are" Catrina said her tone turning more vile by the second.

"What do you want Catrina"? Morgause asked , her tone sounding fed up but equally as frightened.

"Well let me see "Catrina began in her vile tone, "When I said finish Arthur off I meant finish him off not faff about on the edge of the stairs"! Catrina continued in the same tone as before.

Morgause couldn't believe what she had just heard. "I wasn't faffing about, I told you that I didn't want to go that far but you did it anyway!" Morgause shouted, furious that Catrina had dared to bring up the day that no one else had even attempted to speak about.

"Oh but it wasn't me "Catrina replied but her tone getting more vile by the minute.

"What do you mean "? Morgause said as she heard her own voice get lower.

Catrina walked up to Morgause slowly as if she was a criminal, "Do I have to explain everything to you "? She began before interrupting Morgause as she was about to respond,"You see who was the one who kept bitching about Arthur in the first place"? Catrina asked in a less than nice tone.

Morgause hesitated which Catrina picked up on and let out an evil grin. "Err... well I did" Morgause then stammered quietly.

Catrina then held a finger near Morgauses lip to silence her. Catrina then walked across to one of the mirrors near the sink to carry on talking.

"So all I did then was come up with a plan to make your wishes come true, but even that didn't seem to please you ". Morgause was about to but in when Catrina shouted "Don't interrupt!" before carrying on with her next sentence.

"Therefore I knew despite your word that you would chicken out at the last minute so just think of it as me doing you a favour by moving things along a bit "Catrina finished off her sentence with a small chuckle before turning around sharply to give a death stare at Morgause.

Morgause was speechless for a single second before catching her courage to speak again.

"Move things along, you practically killed him" Morgause was close to wailing as tears were glistening in her eyes.

Catrina frowned, "No Morgause, don't you see it was you who sent him to his near death" she hissed before raising her eyebrows.

"What are you on about you evil witch"! Morgause said as her voice went higher along with the tears in her eyes threatening to slide down her cheek.

Catrina let out an evil laugh which echoed through the girl's toilets before walking so close to Morgause that her lips were touching Morgauses ear.

Catrina then whispered, "I said that I wouldn't be responsible for those actions if you didn't have the guts to push him, and guess what ... I was right I'm not responsible for those actions". Catrina paused as if to create suspension " **you are** ", were her final words before walking out of the toilets silently, leaving Morgause standing near the hand dryer confused but at the same time lonely and desperate for someone to understand and not judge her for it.

Merlin was sat in his pitch black, empty bedroom letting his thoughts take over his mind. After helping Morgana and her father, he and Gwen had been told to go home by Morgana as she felt that they had done more than enough for them throughout the past few days.

However Merlin couldn't stop thinking about the consequences if Arthur was to never wake up. In his dreams, he could picture Morgana facial expressions screaming out major pain and the feeling of being distraught and distressed. The effect on Uther would be a million times worse, Merlin could picture him falling apart leaving Morgana to pick up the pieces yet again but for the very last time.

Merlin was about to drift off when his phone vibrated, he had received a text message. When he knew who it was from he sprung out of bed to read what she had put.

 _Morgana- +4407594660960_  
 _Merlin_  
 _You have to get to the hospital, NOW!_  
 _It's urgent..._

Merlin's heart started to pound viciously, what if his worst nightmare had suddenly became reality?

Instead of debating what the massive issue could be, Merlin rushed to get himself dressed then out the front door as his parents were still away at work. He scribbled a little note saying that he might be late home; luckily the hospital wasn't far away from where he lived.

Merlin soon found himself barging past nurses and running across the corridors despite being told off by two doctors. Even at the unbelievable speed his legs seemed to be taking him at, he felt as if he should have been there earlier , in the room with Morgana and possibly her father so he could hear the bad news with them so he could comfort and help through the worst to come.

But as soon as he burst into the room with sweat dripping off his face and breathing like an animal that had been trapped in a cage with barely any oxygen. Merlin was heavily taken aback when he saw Arthur turning his head to look at Merlin even though he couldn't see Merlin at the door.

Merlin opened his mouth to try and speak but only a small squeaking noise came out along with a huge pile of tears that were now rolling off his cheeks in a long line. Everyone else in the room including Morgana and her father had the same expression on their faces as Merlin; Uther especially had been crying the most as his cheeks were tear stained with happiness.

Morgana looked as if she wanted to jump in the air, to want to scream and shout that her brother was alright, she too had been crying but she didn't have as much evidence as her father.

No one spoke for another five minutes until Morgana personally thanked everyone for their support and for the things they did to show their support. This then escalated to a conversation between everyone including Arthur as his brain hadn't suffered from any brain damage.

Morgana started the conversation by telling Arthur how much he was missed and how much Merlin and Gwen had helped her and Uther through the misery of missing him. Arthur didn't seem to be disappointed but at the same time he didn't seem too pleased either. But Arthur's emotions towards what was being said started to show more a bit by bit as the conversation went on.

"School has been horribly different without you "Gwen commented who had just came into the room.

Arthur let out a very tiny smile.

Uther then commented about how the atmosphere in the house had changed since Arthur hadn't been there. However it was Morgana's next sentence that had made the most impact on Arthur.

"We have all been so worried about you that it has affected us in many ways ", was Morganas comment.

While everyone else was too wrapped up in the own bubbles of pure joy, Merlin was the only one out of the group who instantly spotted the fact that Arthur's facial expression fell when Morgana has finished her comment leaving Merlin wondering what was going through his head.

Although Merlin didn't want to ruin the joyful atmosphere in the room, he couldn't help but think that Arthur had something on his mind that he wouldn't discuss or open up to with anyone.

But whatever it may be , Merlin was determined to find out.


	9. In the dark fear cuts deeper than swords

After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, Merlin was more than thrilled to see Morgana's left arm linked with Arthur's right arm.

Morgana herself had changed a lot regarding her appearance; her hair looked more soft and welcoming as if it had also had a major mood swing. Merlin also noticed that Morgana was smiling a lot, with her gaze particularly aimed at Arthur.

When Gwen made her appearance Morgana rushed up to her and gave her a massive hug while thanking her endlessly for all of her help and support. Merlin knew that he wouldn't get the same treatment as he didn't need anyone endlessly thanking him to tell him that his support was valued, which he felt that Morgana knew all too well.

However when he was finally able to look past Morganas smiles he instantly noticed that Arthur's smile was nowhere to be seen, as if the muscles that are used to smile had been ripped out of him and replaced with metal. Although Arthur had suddenly faced the same direction as him, he could never tell if Arthur had actually caught his gaze.

But what Merlin didn't need a second thought on was that something was bothering Arthur and it was that moment when Merlin was determined to get to the bottom of Arthur's troubles no matter what the risk was .

Throughout the school day Merlin quickly discovered that Arthur hadn't spoken once, not even when a group of six students came up to him and said how pleased they were that he was back with us. Arthur had also ignored the praise from a couple teachers including Mr Agravaine. All Merlin did throughout all the praise was look at every single one of Arthur's movements and facial expressions, figuring out that his facial expression stayed blank throughout the whole day.

However when Arthur's strange and equally worrying behavior continued throughout the next couple days which soon turned into a whole week , Merlin was getting increasingly worried and not just to fill his own well-meaning curiosity but also for Arthur's mental health which to Merlin was disintegrating in front of his very eyes.

Throughout the week of Arthur's odd behavior, Arthur was becoming more frequently clumsy which attracted a lot of attention from other students, one teacher but mostly from Morgana who these days didn't trust anyone to help or even go near Arthur. However Arthur had automatically snapped at anyone who even tried to touch him with one finger which shocked most of the people who wanted to help him. But Arthur showed no emotion or even a slightest bit of guilt when hearing other people's hurt and disappointment.

Despite Arthur's sudden new behavior Morgana unusually always kept smiling no matter how loud or mouthy Arthur seemed to get. Gwen on the other hand tried to help Arthur once but unexpectedly received an earful, since then Gwen had stayed clear of him just in case he felt that everyone was crowding his personal space. But just by seeing the hurt in Gwen's eyes told Merlin that whatever is going on with Arthur was possibly more serious than he first thought; fortunately for him his opportunity to find out exactly what was going on was just round the corner.

"Merlin I've been given a detention for not handing in my stupid assignment, could you maybe just make sure that Arthur gets home alright", were Morgana's words that kept ringing in his ears.

"Yeah" was Merlin's blurted out answer before waving goodbye to Morgana and Gwen.

At first Merlin did his best to keep himself hidden from Arthur, even though he knew that Arthur could probably sense Merlin's presence throughout his walk home. However Arthur wasn't even half way home before he tripped over the edge of the path and cut his knee in the process. Merlin could hear Arthur's muttering and swearing, then without thinking of the consequences Merlin ran over to Arthur and tried to help him up, his hand was angrily shaken off Arthur's shoulder.

"Merlin", was the only word that Arthur needed in that particular sentence.

Merlin didn't seem to understand Arthur's hint, "just let me get you up and we can walk home together" Merlin tried kindly.

"Merlin don't" was Arthur's half snappy response, Merlin wasn't going to take no as an answer.

"It would be quicker if I just-", Merlin was cut off by Arthur's hand rising up as if he could control the volume of Merlin's voice. Merlin tried once more to get Arthur back on to his feet and to look at his blood soaked jeans from his cut knee before getting a look of pure evil from Arthur.

"Merlin just leave it"! Arthur spat viciously, Merlin now knew that he was treading on egg shells; however he couldn't stop his mouth from blurting out his next sentence.

"Can't you see I was trying to help you" Merlin called out which had finally pushed Arthur to his limit .

"What is it with you lot and thinking that I need help!" Arthur shouted which made Merlin almost jump out of his skin as a result of the unexpected outburst. Before Merlin could even make a squeaking sound Arthur had a whole rant in place for Merlin.

"Help is what got my family stuck like this, me, my mum, my dad and Morgana, we were all so happy until some bastard decided to set fire to our house and took away all our happiness and more importantly our amount of trust and our tolerance of help".

"I don't understand" Merlin replied his eyes looking straight at Arthur.

"Well you wouldn't" Arthur began viciously before calming down a little to carry on talking. "You have no idea of how much I am forced to depend on other people and their versions of help every single day of my life"!

Merlin stood in complete silence.

"Do you want to know what it's like being me"? Arthur paused for a split second before answering his own shouted out question leaving Merlin without time to think of a response.

"I have to go through life as if nothing that anyone says or does bothers me, I have to pretend that I am fine when in reality I feel like having a breakdown, I have to cope with the stares and whispers from people who know zilch about me and the truth about my condition that I have to hide away from the putrid public that we call society, I have to be polite and civil to total strangers who seem to think I appreciate the help they give who then get the impression that my life is a walk in the park as a result of their so called kindness."

At this point Merlin still hadn't said a word since the beginning of Arthur's rant. Stunned at how honest Arthur had been so far made him realise the impact of Merlin's earlier offer of help.

Arthur's eyes suddenly turned cold at saying the next part of his rant in a quieter tone.

"But what hurts me the most is that as a result of all the help I require I have cost nearly everyone I know their entire lives, especially my family".

There was a sudden pause.

Arthur sighed before speaking. "My family have risked everything they have ever had because of me, I am the burden of the family who just trails along like a vile curse, if I wasn't so dependent on my family's help and time then maybe things could have been different, my mum would still be alive therefor my father's happiness wouldn't have been ripped out from him and Morgana could have had a life away from responsibility and danger".

"Arthur don't think that it wasn't your fault" Merlin called, hoping that Arthur would listen and understand.

"Merlin if I hadn't taken up to five minutes of my fathers and Morganas time that day then that five minutes could have saved my mother's life, this would have meant that Morgana would have been able to do what girls her age do along with being treated as the younger sibling that she is instead of a care worker, my father would have continued to be the cheerful and positive man he once was without constantly worrying about when the remains of his family would be struck next by an evil tragedy".

Merlin took a deep breath; he could feel the tension between Arthur and his words at the highest he had ever known since the first day Merlin had met him.

Arthur just looked at Merlin with pure sorrow before squeezing out his final part of his rant, his voice almost silent.

"Do you know what the scary thing is"? Arthur asked, his voice breaking slightly.

"No" Merlin said in almost a whisper before taking a moment to study Arthur's face for a single second for any tears that had found their way to escape Arthur's eyes as well as his own.

Arthur let out a heavy sigh. "All people ever do is judge others for being beyond what is considered to be normal or flaming those who can't do what most people can, these sorts people have no idea what you go through every day, the amount of guilt, self-hatred and most of all self-pity that you have against yourself. In the end it doesn't matter how much you cry, scream, shout or feel sorry for yourself as nothing in the past changes despite what you're willing to say, do, prove or give to remove the bad things that happen in life"!

"Arthur I-"Merlin stammered before Arthur interrupted him.

"Look I have nothing more to say, please just leave me alone". With those last words Arthur got his cane and walked away from Merlin until he was no longer able to be seen from a distance.

The next hour was spent by Merlin looking out into the distance that Arthur had walked past as if he was hoping that Arthur would change his mind and return.

Merlin spent that very evening lying on his left side, in the dark with his face pressed against the pillow and looking up to the ceiling as if it held the cure to Merlin's guilt. His brain replaying Arthur's words over and over so much that Merlin could recite them in a play.

 _Curiosity killed the cat,_ an old quote that his mother often said when he was little sprung to mind. Not liking the fact that this time it was appropriate to take it and hurl it at himself in attempt to make himself feel responsible for Arthur's rant taking place along with the nasty feeling of regret from being one of many people who had been to consistent when wanting to help Arthur.

A single tear gently rolled down Merlin's cheek before it got wiped away by Merlin's hand. Merlin sighed heavily before shutting his eyes and hoping that Arthur would see the error of his ways when thinking that there was nothing that could change his situation.

However the following morning couldn't have come any faster for Merlin. Although he was afraid of what may be thrown at him verbally, in his mind he was determined to put things right.


	10. Hidden behind the darkness

The next following days were in Merlin's own words the most depressing days of his entire life. Merlin knew that he had been through worse, a lot worse. However the previous day with Arthur's rant had got to him deeper than words could express. Every time Gwen or some of his other friends had asked if everything was ok, he forced himself to lie. He couldn't face telling anyone about last night, not even Morgana who hadn't been in the best of moods herself lately.

Morgana had walked around school as if someone had dragged all the life out of her. Whenever anyone asked about Arthur she would either snap at them with pure anger, mumble something so the other person couldn't make out what she had said or had just ignored them completely.

However the most unusual part of all was that Arthur hadn't been at school at all since his rant. Merlin himself had bravely asked where he was which got him the response of, "he overslept".

But as they days kept coming and going Arthur had been 'oversleeping' for a while which only lead to Merlin having deeper thoughts of what Morgana was hiding but more importantly what was going on in the Pendragon family.

Morgause was also another victim of the deep feeling of despair. Since the day Arthur had come back to school Morgause had kept her distance, especially from Morgana and Merlin who refused to acknowledge the fact she even existed. Morgause had also made an effort to avoid any contact with anyone publicly or online, in fear of being verbally and mentally abused. Just as she had done to Arthur.

Morgause clenched her fist as if she was crushing herself to pieces in pure frustration. Tears leaking out of her eyes like an overflowing river in sorrow, the same sorrow that she had to live with since that dreadful day which Catrina was technically responsible for.

 _But I didn't stop her_ Morgause thought to herself, tears still rolling down her tear stained cheeks. She forcefully wiped them away with the back of her hand.

 _I just let it happen and now the whole school is against me and there's nothing I can do._ Was another of the whirlwind of thoughts that were spinning around her head, making her feel queasy just by the mention of them.

A deep spark of realisation hit her. _This feeling of sorrow, isolation, fear all matches up with Arthur. This is how he must have felt on a daily basis even if he refused to show it to anyone, including himself._

Fresh tears made their way from Morgause's eyes, this time she didn't bother to stop them. _I need to get this in the out and open,_ was Morgause's final thought before closing her eyes and taking a long deep breath.

Like Morgause Catrina had also distanced herself from the public, however nobody knew if it was for the right reasons. This was one of many things people were genuinely afraid of, not knowing when she could strike next. Like a snake with venom. The difference is her weapon consisted of her own poison which she liked to refer to as her voice.

However that wasn't even the worst part of it all.

It was her eyes. Her dark, mischievous brown eyes. Those eyes that could detect weakness in less than a millisecond, the eyes which correctly spelt the word trouble. Her eyes were too many people known as the lasers that zapped every ounce of confidence and happiness out of someone within minutes of contact. It was those eyes that sussed out each opportunity to voice her mission and desires loud and clear, no matter the outcome or the consequences.

And if anyone got hurt in the process, that was just tough.

On the other hand Arthur who was flopped on his bed was holding a photo of himself, Morgana, his father and mother sitting happily by a tree which used to be the spot they went for picnics. Although he could never see the tree for himself he could trace his finger along the photo to at least get a sense of what true happiness felt like. Clutching the photo towards his chest, body shaking and his grip on the photo increasing with every shake.

Slamming the photo on to the little table next to his bed he began pinching at his arm causing it to go a bright red. His blue eyes full of cold tears stinging his eyes that he refused to shed. _I'm not going to cry, I_ _ **won't**_ _cry!_

Forcing himself to keep the tears at bay Arthur squeezed his eyes shut so hard that when the tears had vanished his eyes screaming out in pain whenever he blinked.

" _Why should am I the one who feels like crying instead of those who I've been the permanent burden of for so many years!"_ Arthur whispered to himself spitefully, spitting out his words as if they were too horrific to say out loud.

Arthur snapped his head around the room, listening out for any signs of sounds or footsteps within the house. Realising that nobody was within hearing distance, Arthur began to whisper under his breath with hatred.

" _Oh come on how could I think anyone was even remotely interested in my silly rambles, it's not like my father would absorb my words and be able to make sense of them!"_ Arthur began to pinch at his arm again, angry red marks appearing on his repeatedly pinched skin.

" _He's only in this mess because of me!"_ Arthur stopped pinching himself for a single second before carrying on, only this time his pinches becoming longer along with the increasing amount of pain.

 _He's not the only one to bear the burden of my life threatening problems"._ Arthur's memory instantly took him back to the rant he had practically yelled to Merlin, his eyes burning with fresh hot tears that failed to escape.

Arthur sighed in remorse, " _Merlin was different from all the others… he was actually kind, caring and dare it say it lovable. But what do I go and do … I once again be the selfish, angry loathsome human being I am and push him away"._

Arthur curled up into the smallest ball he could manage before letting out the tears that had been forced into his eyes for a huge amount of time. His tears trickling down his cheeks, as if all the life was being drained out of him.

" _I pushed Merlin away"_ were Arthur's only words that were repeatedly whimpered out. His entire body now shaking with the fear, regret and the deep guilt that all rushed through him like a tsunami , destroying anything in its path. For Arthur that tsunami was ripping him apart, his happiness along with his confidence mentally and physically disintegrating into dust.

At this point the shaking had ceased a tiny fraction along with his whimpering disappearing into the deafening sound of silence. He had managed to get his breathing under control even if in the inside he was anything but controlled.

" _Lets face it, I'm not worth the hassle or the effort of other people's gratitude as I never show anybody my appreciation for it. I have even driven Morgana to a mental breakdown, more than once. She should be out there doing what girls her age do such as sleepovers, trips to the cinema, having a good time with friends. Not hanging around a sour , repulsive pathetic excuse for a human being like me!"_

Arthur looked up at the ceiling as if it held the solutions to all his problems, tears continuing to rapidly dribble down his cheeks. He sighed deeply before lying back on his bed.

" _I don't know if you can hear me but I am now at the point of my life where I just want to jack it all in. I am physically and mentally drained to the point where I can not go on! But I know that isn't the answer and I don't want to resort to that, but I am at a loss of what to do, please help … please mum"_ The last word silently whispered out.

Arthur turned to his right hand side, grabbing the photo once more before clutching it to his chest. To never let go. As if to unleash the positive ,lively, cheerful child he had once been.

Letting out a heavily depressed sigh Arthur's eyes began to close, drifting off to the only place he seemed to get along with these days. His grip slightly loosening on the photo before sleep claimed him. The photo swiftly gliding to the floor, the actual photo part facing Arthur as if to tell him something. Something important that would change his life for eternity.


End file.
